Venezuela - President Nicolas Maduro & his wife "captured and flown out of country" by U.S. Army Delta Force during "large scale attack" - Jan 3, 2026

[SouthAussie]

Fast fact ... Maduro's wife is a lawyer.


Flores is a lawyer by training, and she once fought for the release from prison of Hugo Chávez, who tried to seize control of the Venezuelan government in 1992 and later went on to become the country's president. Her career became forever linked with Chávez's movement.

What we know about US strikes on Venezuela

Maduro and his wife were taken from "a house that was more like a fortress", Donald Trump says.

www.bbc.com

 

[NuttMegg]

From what I've watched in the media as Venezuela's people are weeping with joy and celebrating, they seem to have a completely different take on the situation.

I wonder if any have been briefed on Trump's stated intent to run the country and the oil fields. Given that there are nearly 7.9 M exiles, will one of Trump's priorities be to help repatriate them, ensure housing, medicine, food and so forth? Pay for long trips across SA to reunite families? Many of the exiles flooded Colombia, then others moved down through the Andes where they are expelled from one country, accepted via humanitarian efforts in others, about to be expelled again per new RW election results.

I suspect the oil revenues won't help actual Venezuelans much. Unfortunately their elation will probably be, imo, short lived when they see the oil games will take precedence over restoring their home land.

Imo

 

[SouthAussie]

Trump in an interview with The New York Post said U.S. troops would not be on the ground in Venezuela — as long as the country’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, “does what we want.”

Live updates: Trump says the U.S. will 'run' Venezuela until a transition can take place

Follow live updates as a series of explosions are heard around Venezuela's capital after a military buildup in the Caribbean, tanker seizures, and Trump pressing President Nicolás Maduro to step down.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Sundog]

Now, we should know by now that Mr Trump cares little for such legal niceties as due process, but isn't the first point the defence are going to make at Maduro's first court appearance going to be that there needs to have been a legally valid arrest warrant. After that there's the question of a legally valid extradition process and the Sovereign Immunity of heads of state.

My understanding is that both the Biden and Trump administrations have had an arrest warrant for some time and they also were offering reward money for his arrest based on the charges.

 

[branmuffin]

Even the UN acknowledges that Maduro was not the lawful president of Venezuela. He was a that hijacked a nation.

You know what? Maduro did what Trump wanted to do in 2020 - not give up control of the government. But there were guardrails in the US to stop that. In a country that was crippled by poverty and corruption it was easier for Maduro to be successful in his refusal to give up his position.

 

[NuttMegg]

My understanding is that both the Biden and Trump administrations have had an arrest warrant for some time and they also were offering reward money for his arrest based on the charges.

The indictment was 2020. Trump, iirc

 

[LAborn]

My understanding is that both the Biden and Trump administrations have had an arrest warrant for some time and they also were offering reward money for his arrest based on the charges.

"Trump says he partially deserves $50M reward for capture of Venezuelan president" color me shocked (not). MSN​

 

[Sundog]

The indictment was 2020. Trump, iirc

The reward money was offered at the end of the Biden administration in 2025, I believe. So presumably there were criminal charges stated then, as well.

 

[Hexe]

My understanding is that both the Biden and Trump administrations have had an arrest warrant for some time and they also were offering reward money for his arrest based on the charges.

An arrest warrant issued by an American court is valid only within the borders of US. And there was no international arrest warrant for Maduro.

 

[branmuffin]

The Washington Post explains exactly why the US falsely claims that Venezuela stole their oil from foreign control in 1976.

Trump uses the same excuse that western countries did when they colonized Africa, India, the East Indies, etc and then got butthurt when they were eventually kicked out. Yes, they provided an infrastructure which took most of the resources for export. Colonization doesn't benefit the subjects only the parasitic colonizer. Building refineries in another country doesn't make you the owner of the raw material.

 

[Ruminations]

I wonder if any have been briefed on Trump's stated intent to run the country and the oil fields. Given that there are nearly 7.9 M exiles, will one of Trump's priorities be to help repatriate them, ensure housing, medicine, food and so forth? Pay for long trips across SA to reunite families? Many of the exiles flooded Colombia, then others moved down through the Andes where they are expelled from one country, accepted via humanitarian efforts in others, about to be expelled again per new RW election results.

I suspect the oil revenues won't help actual Venezuelans much. Unfortunately their elation will probably be, imo, short lived when they see the oil games will take precedence over restoring their home land.

Imo

I know I'm pounding this analogy today, but:

There were persons appalled by the greed and callousness allowed by lack of regulation to be committed by big medical conglomerates. Some of them were quite literally celebrating the murder of a CEO of a major and particularly egregious company.

But murder is murder. If the suspect is convicted in a fair trial, the suspect should pay the price, no matter how many deaths the CEO caused.

A military invasion and kidnapping done not only without international support of the UN and treaties, but done without even the appropriate internal support of the US government, not even shared with a select tiny group of senators and representatives before attacking, is against international law and US law.

Our feelings about the persons kidnapped have nothing to do with it; our feelings about Maduró have nothing to do with it. It doesn't matter that there were celebrations. Just because the suspect in a CEO killing was regarded as a hero, even a saint, by many on the internet, does not make his murdering okay. We don't just say, oh well, millions of people oppressed by the US healthcare system are happy now, so, no harm done!

Just because we have seen images of people celebrating does not make it okay. No matter what "it" is. It is laws that determines what is okay.


MOO

 

[BayouBelle_LA]

"Trump says he partially deserves $50M reward for capture of Venezuelan president" color me shocked (not). MSN​

Lol the key word there is “joked”. Look at the bright side. He saved the United States $50 M.

 

[LAborn]

Lol the key word there is “joked”. Look at the bright side. He saved the United States $50 M.

He means it. He jokes about many things he's dead serious about. JMO

 

[branmuffin]

omg @otto. I was just reading some of this document from November 2025.

Now, I must print and read it all. I encourage others to do the same.
Thank you so very much for posting and encouraging the reading of this.

I printed it off a couple of weeks ago. I was afraid it would get removed from the government website. Very scary stuff.

 

[Gators North]

Iran isn't looking very stable at present. The latest wave of popular protests isn't being as widely reported as previous ones, but this time there are some indications that Iranian police and military units may be siding with the protesters in some cities, leading to the regime apparently importing Arab thugs to bolster its position.

Maybe the U.S. will “step into” Iran next.

 

[branmuffin]

It’s an American First strategy which shouldn’t come as a big surprise. I can see why other countries might not like it. imo

What does AFS mean do you, though? Does it mean the same thing to you as it does to me? A Canadian who has already heard DJT ruminate about making Canada the 51st state. Does that sit well with you - a blatant document that suggests 'by any means necessary'?

 

[justtrish]

Lol the key word there is “joked”. Look at the bright side. He saved the United States $50 M.

I loved that when he said he saved the US 50 million. Sometimes he says off the cuff things and people get so worked up about it, but often there is a joke in there or sarcasm.

 

[Gators North]

No one is defending him. However, Trump seems to have considered him a legitimate leader by saying Maduro’s Vice President is the acting head of government. He has expressly NOT invited any of the opposition to Maduro to take over.

IMHO it’s going to be a puppet government designed to extract all profits for American oil companies and nothing for the people of Venezuela.

 

[Gators North]

I assume that Vice President Vance would become President if something happened to incapacitate our President.

Unfortunately, yes.

 

[Sundog]

Unfortunately, yes.

In your opinion, that is.